'Star Wars': Major Character Cut From Obi-Wan Kenobi Show
The upcoming Star Wars limited series Obi-Wan Kenobi will include several familiar characters when the first episode is released on Disney+ on May 25. One of them will not be Darth Maul, who was originally supposed to appear in the show at one point, sources told The Hollywood Reporter on Monday. During a creative overhaul, writers decided to include Darth Vader instead.
The original writer on Obi-Wan Kenobi was Hossein Amini, but production was halted in early 2020 because Lucasfilm was unhappy with the scripts. According to THR's sources, director Deborah Chow showed the scripts to The Mandalorian executive producers Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau. They immediately became concerned that Obi-Wan was too similar to The Mandalorian at that point, since Obi-Wan focused on the titular character protecting Luke Skywalker, just like The Mandalorian has Din Djarin protecting Grogu.
Amini's early scripts had Maul as one of the characters hunting Obi-Wan and Luke. Vader wasn't involved in the story at all at this point, sources told THR. Filoni and Favreau also suggested Chow make the show "bigger" before Lucasfilm chief Kathleen Kennedy ultimately decided to pause production. Joby Harold was hired to replace Amini as the new writer.
It's not clear how far along things got before Maul was completely cut. A child actor was reportedly cast as Luke, but he never filmed anything. Ray Park, the actor who played Maul in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, was involved in stunt training and visited the set for preproduction. Some footage may have been shot, but another source said it was only test footage. A Lucasfilm insider told THR Park never came to the Obi-Wan set and Maul was never intended for the show.
After Maul was written out, Filoni suggested Vader be included. The Grand Inquisitor, a villain in the Star Wars Rebels animated series, was also added to the story. Grant Feely replaced the previously cast actor as Luke.
Maul was introduced in The Phantom Menace, with Obi-Wan cutting him in half after he killed Qui-Gon Jinn, played by Liam Neeson. Of course, the character was so popular that Filoni and George Lucas found a way to bring him back in Star Wars: The Clone Wars. The Rebels episode "Twin Suns" included the final battle between Maul and Obi-Wan. Park briefly played Maul in Solo: A Star Wars Story, set before "Twin Suns," but he didn't get a chance to star in a Solo sequel since the movie flopped.
Obi-Wan stars Ewan McGregor in the title role. Joel Edgerton was also brought back as Uncle Owen Lars since he played the character in Attack of the Clones before he was famous. Hayden Christensen is also set to play Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader. The series will run only six episodes.